As of: February 20, 2024, 5:38 p.m
By: Bona Hyun
Comments
Press
Split
In the dispute over the Growth Opportunities Act, the fronts before the mediation committee of the Bundestag and Bundesrat remained hardened.
Now this could even fail.
Berlin – The mediation committee on the Growth Opportunities Act on Wednesday (February 21) is in danger of failing.
“We expect an adjournment,” one of those involved told the
Reuters
news agency on Tuesday (February 20).
This assessment is shared by both the traffic light parties and the Union, said another person.
The main reason is that Union representatives continue to insist that the mediation committee of the Bundestag and Bundesrat not only approve the compromise proposal for limited tax relief for companies, but that the government should reverse the cuts in subsidies for agricultural diesel.
The government rejects this.
It is said that an adjournment would not be a problem because the Federal Council will not meet again until March 22nd.
Growth Opportunities Act in the Mediation Committee – Union continues to block
Chancellor Olaf Scholz, as well as Economics Minister Robert Habeck and the parliamentary group leaders of the SPD, Greens and FDP, called for a quick agreement.
The planned regulations would be a significant relief for companies, said Scholz (SPD) at an event organized by the employers' umbrella association BDA.
Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) pointed out that the volume of relief had already shrunk significantly.
“But these impulses should come.
And to be fair, they’re already late,” he said.
Concern about the economic crisis in Germany is growing.
Economists have clear demands on the traffic lights.
© Christoph Soeder/dpa
If an agreement between the federal and state governments fails on Wednesday, a new working group could be set up to negotiate a compromise on the agricultural issue.
SPD parliamentary group leader Rolf Mützenich said that the traffic light would meet with 31 agricultural associations on Wednesday.
Many people do not see agricultural diesel as a crucial problem for them; the Union must learn to understand that.
Already tough fronts on the Growth Opportunities Act before the Mediation Committee
An informal federal-state group with representatives from both the traffic light parties and the Union presented a compromise proposal to the mediation committee.
This limited the tax relief for companies from just over seven to an average of 3.2 billion euros per year.
The reason was that, according to the government proposal, the states and municipalities in particular would have had to bear a large part of the shortfall in tax revenue.
CDU leader Friedrich Merz rejected criticism from some business associations that had called on the Union to agree to this compromise solution.
The leading associations BDI and BDA did not take part; the call should also have gone to the SPD prime ministers, who would also have called the mediation committee, emphasized the opposition leader.
Criticism of the Union for blocking the Growth Opportunities Act
Merz and the CSU regional group leader Alexander Dobrindt accused the traffic light of wanting to compensate for tax relief by cutting agricultural diesel for farmers.
Both belong together and that will also be the subject of the discussions in the mediation committee, said Merz.
Dobrindt, like the parliamentary managing director of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group, Thorsten Frei, pointed out that the slimmed-down law does not solve the fundamental problems of the economy in Germany anyway.
Frei spoke of a “package”.
My news
Pension increase in summer 2024: Heil gives the first forecast for pensioners
Russia threatens “logistics collapse”: China bank lets Putin run into the ground read
Next real estate insolvency: Construction crisis is dragging more and more companies into the abyss
Dispute over the end of nuclear power: “Maybe the Greens will get a telephone number and find out more” read
“Not an issue”: Heil talks about the future of mini-job reading
Pension in the event of occupational disability only possible for two years read
The Union faction wants to submit a motion on Wednesday with demands for twelve economic policy reforms.
Merz and Dobrindt had already requested this in a letter to Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
“I call on Friedrich Merz that we pass the Growth Opportunities Act together in the Mediation Committee on Wednesday.
This is responsibility for the German economy,” said Green Party co-parliamentary leader Katarina Dröge before the parliamentary group meeting.
“Our economy in Germany is desperately waiting for the Growth Opportunities Act,” said FDP parliamentary group leader Christian Dürr.
He could not understand why the Union was opposing this plan.
(bohy/reuters)